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Campbell Saunders
Campbell "Cam" Saunders (c. 1996 - 2012) was a sophomore (Grade 10) at Degrassi in Season 12. Like his Junior Hockey teammates, Campbell was athletic. Unlike his teammates, Cam was gentle, shy, and sweet. He got along with almost anyone, but was romantically awkward. Not too good at holding grudges, he believed in giving others second chances. He tried to be himself at all times, but it was difficult since everyone counted on him to be their perfect image, when he just really wanted to fit in. But whatever confidence he lacked in social settings, he more than made up for it on the ice with his dominating skills. He was friends with Tristan Milligan, Tori Santamaria, Mike Dallas, and Alli Bhandari, and was in a relationship with Maya Matlin for the majority of his stint on season 12. He eventually became enemies with Zig Novak. Cam was also on the Toronto Ice Hounds hockey team. He committed suicide in Bitter Sweet Symphony (1) due to stress/anxiety issues, loneliness, depression, and an apparent psychological disorder of some sort. He was portrayed by Dylan Everett. Character History Season 12 In Come As You Are (1), he is briefly seen at the assembly. In Gives You Hell (1), he is first seen in French class with Tristan and Maya, being placed into their group. He says that because of hockey practice, he is lacking a French credit. The next day he adds Maya as a friend on Facerange, but not Tristan. Maya leaves her FaceRange page open in the library which Tristan uses to his advantage to talk to Campbell without him knowing it's Tristan. At lunch, he goes over to them and talks to Maya about loaning her his Lost Season 1 DVD because she supposedly mentioned it in her chat with him, but it was actually Tristan. Tristan sends Maya signals to play along and she agrees to Campbell's offer for the DVDs. After Campbell returns to his hockey team, Maya encourages Tristan to go talk to him. Tristan nervously approaches the table where Campbell jokes at his expense to impress his team. Campbell is later seen standing with his hockey team at the pep rally as well as a slide of him is seen on the screen. Later in the hallway, he apologizes to Tristan and Maya, saying that he's a long way from home and that the team is all he has. He hopes that they don't think he's a jerk and walks away. In Gives You Hell (2), He joins Maya and Tristan in class and gives Maya advice on her "audition" for the school play which was actually what Tristan and Cam were talking about on Facerange since he still does not know it is Tristan he is talking to. Throughout the rest of the episode he thinks he is supporting Maya for her audition when it is actually Tristan. When Tristan lands the lead, "Jules" he sends a message to Cam about the news but while he is on Maya's account. Maya and Tristan are about to go to class when Cam approaches them congratulating "Maya" about her lead role. Maya then says she never tried out for the play, both her and Tristan reveal the truth about how Tristan was impersonating Maya on Facerange because he was to afraid to talk to him. Cam tells them that they will never be friends and walks away, hurt and upset on what has happened. In Say It Ain't So (1), Maya invites Cam to sit with her and her friends during lunch, Cam looks like he's about to accept the offer when Dallas drags him to the hockey team's table and laughs at him for even thinking about sitting with girls. Dallas invites Cam to hang out after school with the hockey team but Cam says that he has to Skype with his girlfriend from back home, Jamie. Although Dallas is okay with Cam not joining them, Luke makes a comment saying that Jamie is a guy's name. After school, Cam is practicing hockey and pretending an audience is watching him and chanting his name. Dallas walks in and Cam admits to him that he doesn't have a girlfriend back home. Dallas says that the hockey team doesn't bite, but Cam says they just kinda make fun of him. Dallas tells Cam that he's hanging out with them after school tomorrow the day before a game. After school the next day Cam and the hockey team are at the mall and Cam tells them "I was on the basketball team back home, until they made me pick between it and hockey." Then Dallas tells Cam to use his hockey stardom to pick up a girl. Dallas tells Campbell to try picking up Bianca. Cam goes up to Bianca and tries to impress her with the fact that he's a future NHL player and he will make millions. However, Bianca isn't impressed and when Cam goes with the best pick up line he can muster "You wanna get out of here.. Go get some sex?" Bianca throws her water at his face and leaves. In Say It Ain't So (2), Campbell is in the lunch line between Mo and Maya. Maya starts talking to him and Mo makes fun of his four-leaf clover boxers. Cam then snaps at both of them. Later, he unknowingly finds himself in the girls' bathroom splashing water on his face. Bianca walks in, asks if Cam is stalking her, and threatens to tell Simpson, but Cam stops her and tells her about his troubles. Bianca stops and gives him good advice on what he needs to do. On the bus, Dallas invites Cam to sit in the back with the team but Cam refuses, sits in the front and listens to music with a smile. At Little Miss Steaks, Cam is sitting with the Hockey Team and his teammates praise him by letting him get one of the last pieces of pizza. Maya walks in and Cam immediately gets up to go apologize to Maya about his behavior. She forgives him and teases him about his four-leaf clover boxers, but reveals that she is also wearing four-leaf clover panties and Campbell asks if she would want to hang out later and Maya accepts. In Waterfalls (1), Maya is in class, when Cam walks she stares at him until Tristan and Tori try to get her attention. Tori sees Maya writing a song called "Jersey Boy" then Tori ask about her and Cam. Maya tells her that Cam asked her out. Maya ask Tristan if he's ok with it and Tristan sings that his new love is the musical and that she should go for him. Maya later asks Katie if she can drive her to the mall, Katie asks if she has a date and then Maya tells her it's with Campbell Saunders. Katie doesn't approve since she thinks the hockey guys are bad news. Maya tries to tell her that Cam is different from the others, and if she ever met him she would know that. Katie agrees to drive her, but she is going to be chaperoning them. When their movie is over Maya asks Cam if he liked the movie and he said he liked the best friend which made Katie ask him if it's because the best friend was the "womanizer." Katie starts to ask Cam a lot of questions to Maya's dismay, so Maya distracts Katie and runs away with Cam into a photo booth. While the two of them are in the photo booth, they talk about their siblings and how they did crazy and painful things for them. Cam tells her he misses his brother and that this is the most fun he has had at Degrassi. Maya tells Cam that she doesn't like hockey which Cam replies "Me neither" to and then Maya tries to kiss him but he says that they should go and find Katie. In Waterfalls (2), Maya talks to Cam in front of the school, and gives him the option of where to go for their next date. Cam says the garden, and Maya agrees. Later on, they're at the garden and Maya has a buffet of food set out for them and while they eat, Maya asks him about his hockey career. Cam seems a little disappointed at the conversation, and Maya accidentally spits juice on him. Cam gets up and says he'll go change shirts, and they stand there awkwardly in front of each other. As she leans in to kiss Cam, Maya gets a mouthful of Cam's ear when he turns the other way. Maya steps back and tells him to "break a leg" at his game. Cam then walks away. Later in class, Maya is texting Tristan and Tori about her date with Cam. They get caught and the teacher reads aloud the messages. Cam is embarrassed and upset by them, and when the bell rings, he walks out of the room in a rush. Maya follows him and says she's never had a boyfriend before, she doesn't know how anything works, and she just wants him to like her. He then tells her that he thought she actually cared about him, and not the fact that he was a hockey star. He walks away and leaves Maya distraught. After school, Maya is in her room playing the cello when Cam walks in and tells her Katie let him in. He moves Maya's cello over, and bends down and grabs her hands and tell her that he was nervous and that he never had a girlfriend before and that he really wanted to but he was afraid. He then leans in to kiss her, this marks the relationship's true beginning. In Rusty Cage (1), the hockey team isn't letting him forget that his past few games haven't gone well, but he feels like he's in the zone. In their newest match, the Ice Hounds are close to winning, but he tries to finish the game on his own and ends up letting the other team win. The next day, he talks in class with Maya, Tori, and Tristan who all think that Campbell needs a break from hockey and invite him to karaoke night at Little Miss Steaks, but he has practice and can't miss it. He is later seen Skyping with his mom and tells her that he's homesick and feeling badly about hockey. He can't seem to play well and doesn't know what's wrong with him. His mom tells him to stay positive and stay away from dairy, which always makes him sick. He gets to practice and overhears the rest of the team making fun of him. Dreading another night on the ice, he drinks an entire jug of milk and makes himself throw up in the change room, ensuring he can get out of practice. He tells his team that he has the flu, but heads straight for Little Miss Steaks instead of home. He tells Maya that practice was cancelled and Maya is excited to have a singing partner. He is terrified, but Maya gets him to open up and the two have a great time. Unfortunately, someone videotapes their performance and the Ice Hounds see it. The coach skated the team hard for a hour and now they are going to make sure that he gets the same punishment. The team watch as Campbell practically skates himself to death. When they finally decide he's had enough, Dallas stops him and he collapses on the ice. In the change room he is seen sweating, extremely tired when Dallas talks to him and tosses him a Gatorade bottle to hydrate. When Dallas leaves, Cam has another breakdown, tossing his equipment to notice a large cut on his hand. It's like Cam doesn't know what he does until he calms down. After he notices he covers it with a towel to stop the bleeding. This scene foreshadows his suicide. In Rusty Cage (2), Cam is seen with Maya in the Media Room, examining his plays from the last game. He then comes to a conclusion, that he should play right wing instead of left. Maya thinks this is a good idea. Cam knows that the coach might not approve because he's a rookie. So Cam thinks of asking Dallas, who's yelling at Luke and the twins for dangling off the balcony. When Cam approaches Dallas, Dallas says he'll see and walks away. At the game that night, before Cam hits the right wing, Luke threatens him, saying that if Cam makes them lose then he'll make his life hell. Cam notices Maya and Tristan, and starts to smile. The game begins, and Cam is going strong. By the end, the game is tied 2 to 2. Cam makes a goal, making the score 3 to 2 and winning the game. In the locker room, Dallas and Cam are about to leave when Dallas surprises Cam with the press, obviously knowing he has stage fright and invited them anyway. Cam doesn't speak, and Dallas, grinning, goes outside to speak to the press. Cam has a panic attack, obviously knowing Dallas' plan. He grabs his skate, and almost cut himself before setting it down. The next day he skipped school and staying home, making Maya worried. She kept texting him, at first joking with him about skipping, then getting to the point when she's asking if there's anything wrong then he would tell her. Cam is sitting on his bed reading his texts. He's looking at Maya's, then goes to look at the picture his mom sent him, with her, his sister, and little brother in Ice Hounds jerseys. He then grows sadder and starts packing his bag, wanting to go home. Before he finished, Maya dropped by after school, who is checking on him and dropping off his homework. She asks him why he's ditching, and he admits that the team hates him, and he just wants to be happy. She says he should take a break from hockey, and try other things. She kisses his cheek, Cam smiles, and she asks him if she'll see him at school tomorrow. That next day, Cam is seen dangling on the railing, where Luke and the twins were the day before. He waits for someone to pass by, and jumps off, hitting the ground. He is seen by Ms. Oh, who calls the hospital. He is seen leaving the hospital with Dallas, with a broken arm. Maya arrives, and Dallas tells her that Cam is going to be out of hockey for a six to eight weeks. Dallas leaves Cam and Maya, and she confronts him, asking if he did it on purpose. He tells her he's not one of those people who hurts themselves, and tells her that she makes him happy, and they kiss. In Sabotage (1), Dallas mentions how the Ice Hounds's star player is injured, referring to Cam. In Doll Parts (1), 'Cam and Maya are in his room sitting on his bed. He is doing his homework while Maya is practicing a new song she wrote about him. After she asks him for his thoughts about the song he replies about his stressful homework and can't comment. She tells him to take a break in an attempt to get his mind off of the assignment but he says he can't due to an upcoming test. Maya then mentions they have been dating for a month and have only kissed six times, Cam gives Maya a quick kiss and says seven. Maya, a little hurt asks if that's all she's getting, he tells her that with everything going on it's hard to get in the mood with her. To help him she takes off her shirt and throws it at him. Confused, he asks her what she's doing then worries his billet mom might come in the room. She tries to grab her shirt back and falls off the bed before quickly leaving. Later at school after asking for girl advice from Tori, Maya decides to have a make over so she would look prettier for Cam and possibly compete in a beauty pageant. After Tori and Tristan finish she asks if Cam would like it, Tristan replies that he'd be crazy not to. She goes to Cam's locker and asks him about her new look. He asks her why she is dressed like that and laughs when she tells him that she was thinking about doing a beauty pageant, saying it's not her thing. Upset and almost in tears she yells that she doesn't know what he wants and runs into the music room. Zig finds Maya crying and alone, she explains to him that Cam laughed and he tells her to compete because she should want to not because of what Cam thinks. After the pageant, Maya calls Cam and breaks up with him, ending their first relatonship. In 'Doll Parts (2) 'Maya is talking to Zig about helping her with her song at the pageant when he spots Cam, she mentions that they broke up and he apologized asking why she didn't tell him. She says she didn't feel like broadcasting it to the world, then he asked if things would be awkward. She says no and he leaves. Cam comes up and says he messed up, then asks for a second chance and if she still likes him. Maya says liking him was never the problem, he asks what's wrong and she says he doesn't like her. He says that's crazy. She says that Zig tells Tori she's pretty all the time and he never says it once. Cam says he didn't know he had to, she says he doesn't have to. He apologizes and tells her he's not smooth like Zig but he really does think she's pretty. Maya asks why he never wants to kiss her, he sighs and says he would try harder. She says he doesn't have to try and that Katie was waiting for her, then walks away leaving Cam hurt. After kissing Zig, Maya feels guilty and regretful. When she is about to admit her flaw, she freezes and calls herself a bitch then runs off the stage. She goes to Cam's in tears and tells him he was right, that pageants are stupid and asks if he could forgive her. He does. The next day at lunch Cam, Maya, Tori, and Zig are all sitting together discussing the pageant. Tori won from her speech and Maya says she earned it, they both apologize and Tori mentions that she can't believe Maya lost and that she looks so pretty. Cam says that Maya always looks pretty before kissing her hand as Zig looks on jealous. The bell rings and Maya stays behind telling Zig she regrets the kiss and that she was confused and caught up in the pageant then leaves with Cam before they share a quick kiss. In 'I Want It That Way (1), it is revealed that he is tutored by Alli. He seems to be struggling in Chemistry and Alli teaches him a mnemonic for the elements. Alli tells him she needs to go and Cam is still struggling and asks her to stay longer. In I Want It That Way (2), he, along with Dallas show Alli the C+ he got on his test and is very happy about it. In''' Tonight, Tonight (2), Cam is studying for his french final with Maya, and he calls her beautiful in French. They kiss but he is interrupted by Tori, when she tells them that she thinks she is losing Zig. Later, Cam gives Maya a bracelet; and from now on he will give her one for good luck before every show. He laughts and admits it was his Mom's idea. Maya then breaks the news to him that when they were broken up, she kissed Zig. Cam is speechless and replies with "sucks." and walks away. At the Battle of the Bands competition, Maya is worried because Cam hasn't been answering any of her calls. When she is on the stage to sing, she notices Cam in the audience cheering her on and sending good luck. He tells Maya he's not gonna let her go that easily after Whisper Hugs performance. In '''Degrassi: Las Vegas, he is briefly seen in the Matlins home with Maya, Jake and Katie. In Bitter Sweet Symphony (1) ', Spirit Week starts and Cam finds out that him and Maya will be on different teams, while Maya will be on the same team as Zig. Jealous and paranoid, Cam elbows Zig in the eye and asks him for a fight. Maya and Dallas both attempt to break up the fight, but all four are sent to the principal's office. Dallas attempts to cover for Cam, by saying that he's used to more competitive play, but Simpson stops him in his tracks, wanting an explanation from Cam himself. When Cam tries to say it was an accident, Zig push for Maya's input and she puts the blame on Cam, getting him suspended for the rest of the week. Later on Cam shows up at the Matlin's and brings flowers for Maya, and she convinces him to stay awhile. They're cuddling on the couch when Katie tells them Cam has to go home, but they convince her to let Cam stay for a sleepover. In the morning Cam leaves and sends Maya a video message saying he is gone due to an early hockey practice, and plans to meet Maya later on in front of the school. Cam is sitting on the front steps of the school when Zig walks by, and he ends up calling Cam a psycho, saying he and Maya won't last because of it. This deeply upsets Cam, and as a result he calls it off with Maya via text message and mysteriously disappears. Zig's words cause Cam to have an emotional breakdown and commit suicide in the Degrassi's greenhouse that night. In 'Bitter Sweet Symphony (2), Eli and Clare come upon his body in the school's greenhouse where he lies dead. Even though they didn't show how Cam died, it is hinted that he slit his wrists (cut them) and bleed to dead (in Ray of Light 1). All students are affected in a different way from Cam's suicide. Whether its grief, depression, guilt, denial, sympathy, wondering, comedy, helpfulness, curiosity, relateable, numbness, or any other way to cope with the tragedy. The student council plans a candlelight vigil for him, which Maya is told to speak at. While she is writing her speech for the vigil, she is reminiscing about Cam as she re-watches the video he sent her after leaving early after their sleepover. At the candle light vigil, Maya speaks and calls him out in front of the entire school. In Ray of Light (1), Cam is seen giving Maya a piggy-back ride and laughing in an old video taken before he died. Trivia *Campbell appeared in 17 episodes. **The number of episodes is up for debate. Although Bitter Sweet Symphony (2) was technically the 18th and final episode including Dylan Everett, it is unknown since it only showed Campbell's body and he was seen on video and pictures. *Campbell was one of six regular characters that didn't say anything in their first appearances. The other five were Spike, Marco, Anya, Riley, and Luke. *His twitter *He was a fan of the show "Lost." *He was the youngest player on the Toronto Ice Hounds. This fits with reality - the general minimum age to play Major Junior hockey in Canada is 16, but younger players are occasionally granted "exceptional player" status and can play at that level at a younger age. *He was in grade 10, but took Grade 9 French, due to missing out on French credits for hockey training during his grade 9 year. *He had more "ice time" than Owen, which means that he was a more valuable player. *He was lactose intolerant. *He wore clover-patterned boxers for good luck on game days. *He was Ice Hound number 67. * He came from Kapuskasing, Ontario, 12 hours' drive north of Toronto. * Cam was one of four characters to self-harm, the other three being Ellie, Darcy, and Adam. He is the first biological male to self-harm in the entire franchise. *He had an older brother named Justin. He also has an older sister, and a younger sister and brother. *Campbell was one of five heterosexual characters to be crushed on by a homosexual character. The other four being Griffin (By Marco), Peter (By Riley), Holly J (by Fiona) and Adam (by Tristan). *He lived with the Clarksons as mentioned by his mom in Rusty Cage (1). *He was the second regular to die in the franchise, the first being J.T. Yorke. *He was the sixth character to die overall, the others being Claude Tanner, Albert Manning, Rick Murray, J.T. Yorke and Anson. *He was the second character in Degrassi history to commit suicide, the first was Claude Tanner. *He was the youngest character to die on the show. *Cam was planned to commit suicide when the character was originally conceived by the writers. However, there was some resistance to following through with this idea when Cam became a hit with audiences. *Although Campbell's method of suicide is never stated, it's most likely he cut his wrists. This is foreshadowed by Campbell's reaction to cutting himself with his ice skate in Rusty Cage (1) and shown by the angle Eli was observing when he discovered Campbell, implying his body was not hanging but rather on the ground. Further implication of death by exsanguination is evidenced by Eli's psychological trauma (more specifically his reaction to a spilled bucket of red paint, as seen here). It is also likely that the item used was the skate he cut himself with earlier, as it was foreshadowed and it would cut deep enough. *Campbell spent the shortest time as a regular (one season) along with Kelly Ashoona and Damian Hayes (also one season), followed by Alex Nuñez, Mia Jones, Derek Haig, Johnny DiMarco, Bruce the Moose, Blue Chessex, Darcy Edwards, Declan Coyne, Zane Park, and Wesley Betenkamp (two seasons). *Campbell is currently the only main character who overall only appears in one season. *Maya was the only girl that Cam ever kissed. Quotes *(To Maya and Tristan): "Hey." (first line) *(To Zig): "And what is that?"'' (last line)'' *(To Maya): "Just keep your head up. Stick on the ice. You'll do great." *(To Tristan): "I think you have the wrong table." *(To Maya and Tristan):"We will never be friends. Ever." *(To Bianca): "Do you wanna get out of here, go get some sex?" *Bianca: "Are you lost?" Cam: "Yes. In your eyes." *(Imagining the crowd is cheering for him): "And the crowd goes wild! SAUNDERS, SAUNDERS, SAUNDERS, SAUNDERS!" *(To Bianca): "How am I supposed to survive a whole season here? I have no friends, my hockey team hates me, my family is thousands of miles away, and I'm crying in the girls bathroom." *(To Maya): "I just want to be happy, Maya." *(To Maya): "Maya, I'm not some loser who tries to hurt himself." *(To Tori): "She always looks pretty." (kisses Maya's hand) *Tori: "I feel like I'm losing Zig." Cam: "That's not french." *To Zig: "Dude, you only brought 2 bags of chips? Don't your parents own a convenience store?" *(To Maya): "I'm terrible at telling you things but, I like you. A lot." *(To Maya): "This charm is for your concert tonight, every time you play a show I'll get you a new one." *(To Maya): "When we broke up you were confused, then you came back to me so, are you still confused?" *(To Maya): "Good I'm not gonna let you get away that easily." (hugs Maya) *(To Alli): "I'm tired. I just wish I could go to sleep and never wake up." *(To Alli): "Yeah but all my days are bad!" *(Text Sent To Maya) "I'm not coming. Sorry. It's over." *(To Maya in his video message): "Good morning, Maya Matlin! I'm sorry I had to leave, early morning hockey practice and I didn't want to wake you, you were drooling so cutely. So last night was pretty much the night ever. Um thank you for that. And also, I kidnapped Hoot! If you ever want to see your owl again, meet me on the steps at lunch and we will negotiate for his safe return! Muauahahaha!" Relationships *Maya Matlin **First Relationship: ***Start Up:' Waterfalls (2) '(1212) ***Broke Up: Doll Parts (1) (1223) ****Reason: Maya felt unappreciated. **Second Relationship: ***Start Up: Doll Parts (2) (1224) ***Broke Up:' Bitter Sweet Symphony (1) '(1231) ****Reason: Zig made Campbell think that Maya's life would be better off without him, which triggered his break down, so he broke up with her over text and committed suicide in Degrassi's green house. Category:Degrassi Characters Category:Degrassi Category:Degrassi Teens Category:Season 12 Category:Male Characters Category:Sophomores Category:Athlete Category:Siblings Category:Ice Hounds Category:Main Characters Category:Dead Characters